Isoceles...

'Narrated Anas:
A Jew crushed the head of a girl between two stones. The girl was asked who had crushed her head, and some names were mentioned before her, and when the name of the Jew was mentioned, she nodded agreeing. The Jew was captured and when he confessed, the Prophet ordered that his head be crushed between two stones.'

- Sahih Bukhari 3:596


*                  *                    *




'Narrated Subaia bint Al−Harith: That she was married to Sa`d bin Khaula who was from the tribe of Bani
`Amr bin Luai, and was one of those who fought the Badr battle. He died while she was pregnant during Hajjat−ul−Wada`.' Soon after his death, she gave birth to a child. When she completed the term of deliver (i.e. became clean), she prepared herself for suitors. Abu As−Sanabil bin Bu'kak, a man from the tribe of Bani `Abd−ud−Dal called on her and said to her, "What! I see you dressed up for the people to ask you in marriage. Do you want to marry By Allah, you are not allowed to marry unless four months and ten days have elapsed (after your husband's death)." Subai'a in her narration said, "When he (i.e. Abu As−Sanabil) said this to me. I put on my dress in the evening and went to Allah's Apostle and asked him about this problem. He gave the verdict that I was free to marry as I had already given birth to my child and ordered me to marry if I wished." '

- Sahih Bukhari 5:326

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liar...

Narrated `Uqba bin Al−Harith: "When An−Nuaman or his son was brought in a state of drunkenness, Allah's Apostle ordered all those who were present in the house to beat him. I was one of those who beat him. We beat him with shoes and palm−leaf stalks."

- (Sahih Bukhari Vol.3, hadith 509)






Narrated Um Kulthum bint `Uqba: That she heard Allah's Apostle saying, "He who makes peace between the people by inventing good information or saying good things, is not a liar."

- (Sahih Bukhari Vol.3, hadith 857)

Wives...

Narrated `Urwa from `Aisha: The wives of Allah's Apostle were in two groups. One group consisted of `Aisha, Hafsa, Safiyya and Sauda; and the other group consisted of Um Salama and the other wives of Allah's Apostle. The Muslims knew that Allah's Apostle loved `Aisha, so if any of them had a gift and wished to give to Allah's Apostle, he would delay it, till Allah's Apostle had come to `Aisha's home and then he would send his gift to Allah's Apostle in her home. The group of Um Salama discussed the matter together and decided that Um Salama should request Allah's Apostle to tell the people to send their gifts to him in whatever wife's house he was. Um Salama told Allah's Apostle of what they had said, but he did not reply. Then they (those wives) asked Um Salama about it. She said, "He did not say anything to me." They asked her to talk to him again. She talked to him again when she met him on her day, but he gave no reply. When they asked her, she replied that he had given no reply. They said to her, "Talk to him till he gives you a reply." When it was her turn, she talked to him again. He then said to her, "Do not hurt me regarding Aisha, as the Divine Inspirations do not come to me on any of the beds except that of Aisha." On that Um Salama said, "I repent to Allah for hurting you." Then the group of Um Salama called Fatima, the daughter of Allah's Apostle and sent her to Allah's Apostle to say to him, "Your wives request to treat them and the daughter of Abu Bakr on equal terms." Then Fatima conveyed the message to him. The Prophet said, "O my daughter! Don't you love whom I love?" She replied in the affirmative and returned and told them of the situation. They requested her to go to him again but she refused. They then sent Zainab bint Jahsh who went to him and used harsh words saying, "Your wives request you to treat them and the daughter of Ibn Abu Quhafa on equal terms." On that she raised her voice and abused `Aisha to her face so much so that Allah's Apostle looked at `Aisha to see whether she would retort. `Aisha started replying to Zainab till she silenced her. The Prophet then looked at `Aisha and said, "She is really the daughter of Abu Bakr."

- Sahih Bukhari Vol:3, hadith:755

Ihram...

' Narrated `Abdullah bin Abu Qatada Al−Aslami: That his father said, "One day I was sitting with some of the Prophet's companions on the way to Mecca. Allah's Apostle was ahead of us. All of my companions were in the state of Ihram while I was a non−Muhrim. They saw an onager while I was busy repairing my shoes, so they did not tell me about it but they wished I had seen it. By chance I looked up and saw it. So, I turned to the horse, saddled it and rode on it, forgetting to take the spear and the whip. I asked them if they could hand over to me the whip and the spear but they said, 'No, by Allah, we shall not help you in that in any way.' I became angry and got down from the horse, picked up both the things and rode the horse again. I attacked the onager and slaughtered it, and brought it (after it had been dead). They took it (cooked some of it) and started eating it, but they doubted whether it was allowed for them to eat it or not, as they were in the state of Ihram. So, we proceeded and I hid with me one of its fore−legs. When we met Allah's Apostle and asked him about the case, he asked, 'Do you have a portion of it with you?' I replied in the affirmative and gave him that fleshy foreleg which he ate completely while he was in the state of Ihram .'

- Sahih Bukhari: Vol.3, Hadith 744



'Narrated As−Sa'b bin Jath−thama: An onager was presented to Allah's Apostle at the place called Al−Abwa' or Waddan, but Allah's Apostle rejected it. When the Prophet noticed the signs of sorrow on the giver's face he said, "We have not rejected your gift, but we are in the state of Ihram." (i.e. if we were not in a state of Ihram we would have accepted your gift)'

- Sahih Bukhari: Vol.3, Hadith 747

In and Out..

'The Prophet ordered: "Turn out all the pagans from the Arabian Peninsula, show respect to all foreign delegates by giving them gifts as I used to do." '

- Sahih Bukhari, Vol:4, hadith:393

Judgement...

Narrated Zaid bin Khalid and Abu Huraira: The Prophet said, "O Unais! Go to the wife of this (man) and if she confesses (that she has committed illegal sexual intercourse), then stone her to death."

- Sahih Bukhari: Vol.3, hadith 508


Narrated Um Salama: (the wife of the Prophet) Allah's Apostle heard some people quarreling at the door of his dwelling. He came out and said, "I am only a human being, and opponents come to me (to settle their problems); maybe someone amongst you can present his case more eloquently than the other, whereby I may consider him true and give a verdict in his favor. So, If I give the right of a Muslim to another by mistake, then it is really a portion of (Hell) Fire, he has the option to take or give up (before the Day of Resurrection).

- Sahih Bukhari: Vol.3, hadith 638

`Abdullah bin `Umar..

Narrated Mujahid:

Ursa bin Az−Zubair and I entered the Mosque (of the Prophet) and saw `Abdullah bin `Umar sitting near the dwelling place of Aisha and some people were offering the Duha prayer. We asked him about their prayer and he replied that it was a heresy. He (Ursa) then asked him how many times the Prophet had performed `Umra. He replied, 'Four times; one of them was in the month of Rajab." We disliked to contradict him. Then we heard `Aisha, the Mother of faithful believers cleaning her teeth with Siwak in the dwelling place. 'Ursa said, "O Mother! O Mother of the believers! Don't you hear what Abu `Abdur Rahman is saying?" She said, "What does he say?" 'Ursa said, "He says that Allah's Apostle performed four `Umra and one of them was in the month of Rajab." `Aisha said, "May Allah be merciful to Abu `Abdur Rahman! The Prophet did not perform any `Umra except that he was with him, and he never performed any `Umra in Rajab."

- Sahih Bukhari, Vol-3, hadith-4




Narrated 'Ursa bin Az−Zubair: I asked `Aisha (whether the Prophet had performed `Umra in Rajab). She replied, "Allah's Apostle never performed any `Umra in Rajab."

- Sahih Bukhari, Vol-3, hadith-5



Narrated Qatada:
I asked Anas how many times the Prophet had performed `Umra. He replied, "Four times.
1. `Umra of Hudaibiya in Dhi−l−Qa'da when the pagans hindered him;
2. `Umra in the following year in Dhi−l−Qa'da after the peace treaty with them (the pagans);
3. `Umra from Al−Ja'rana where he distributed the war booty."
I think he meant the booty (of the battle) of Hunain. I asked, "How many times did he perform Hajj?" He (Anas) replied, "Once. "

- Sahih Bukhari, Vol-3, hadith-6

Caliphs..

'Narrated Marwan bin Al−Hakam: I saw `Uthman and `Ali. `Uthman used to forbid people to perform Hajj−at−Tamattu` and Hajj−al−Qiran (Hajj and `Umra together), and when `Ali saw (this act of `Uthman), he assumed Ihram for Hajj and `Umra together saying, "Lubbaik for `Umra and Hajj," and said, "I will not leave the tradition of the Prophet on the saying of somebody." '

- Sahih Bukhari Vol.2, hadith 634

Conversion..

Narrated 'Aisha:
"The day of Bu'ath was a day (i.e. battle) which Allah caused to take place just before the mission of His Apostle so that when Allah's Apostle came to Medina, they (the tribes) had divided (into hostile groups) and their nobles had been killed; and all that facilitated their conversion to Islam."

- Sahih Bukhari: Volume 5, Book 58, Hadith 267

Miqat

"Narrated Ibn `Abbas : Allah's Apostle had fixed Dhul Hulaifa
as the Miqat for the people of Medina; Al−Juhfa for the people
of Sham; and Qarn Ul−Manazil for the people of Najd; and
Yalamlam for the people of Yemen. So, these (above mentioned)
are the Mawaqit for all those living at those places, and
besides them for those who come through those places with the
intention of performing Hajj and `Umra and whoever lives
within these places should assume Ihram from his dwelling
place, and similarly the people of Mecca can assume lhram from
Mecca."

- Sahih Bukhari vol:2, hadith:601, book:26



"Narrated Salim bin `Abdullah from his father: I heard Allah's
Apostle saying, "The Miqat for the people of Medina is
Dhul−Hulaifa; for the people of Sham is Mahita; (i.e.
Al−Juhfa); and for the people of Najd is Qarn. And said Ibn
`Umar, "They claim, but I did not hear personally, that the
Prophet said, "The Miqat for the people of Yemen is Yalamlam." "

- Sahih Bukhari vol:2, hadith:603, book:26


"Narrated Ibn `Umar: When these two towns (Basra and Kufa) were
captured, the people went to `Umar and said, "O the Chief of
the faithful believers! The Prophet fixed Qarn as the Miqat
for the people of Najd, it is beyond our way and it is
difficult for us to pass through it." He said, "Take as your
Miqat a place situated opposite to Qarn on your usual way. So,
he fixed Dhatu−Irq (as their Miqat)." "

- Sahih Bukhari vol:2, hadith:606, book:26

Proselytization..

Narrated Anas:
A young Jewish boy used to serve the Prophet and he became sick. So the Prophet went to visit him. He sat near his head and asked him to embrace Islam. The boy looked at his father, who was sitting there; the latter told him to obey Abul-Qasim and the boy embraced Islam. The Prophet came out saying: "Praises be to Allah Who saved the boy from the Hell-fire."

- Sahih Bukhari (Vol:2, Hadith:438 (Book 23))

*    *    *

Narrated Sa`id bin Al-Musaiyab from his father: When the time of the death of Abu Talib approached, Allah's Apostle went to him and found Abu Jahl bin Hisham and `Abdullah bin Abi Umaiya bin Al-Mughira by his side. Allah's Apostle said to Abu Talib, "O uncle! Say: None has the right to be worshipped but Allah, a sentence with which I shall be a witness (i.e. argue) for you before Allah. Abu Jahl and `Abdullah bin Abi Umaiya said, "O Abu Talib! Are you going to denounce the religion of `Abdul Muttalib?" Allah's Apostle kept on inviting Abu Talib to say it (i.e. 'None has the right to be worshipped but Allah') while they (Abu Jahl and `Abdullah) kept on repeating their statement till Abu Talib said as his last statement that he was on the religion of `Abdul Muttalib and refused to say, 'None has the right to be worshipped but Allah.' (Then Allah's Apostle said, "I will keep on asking Allah's forgiveness for you unless I am forbidden (by Allah) to do so." So Allah revealed (the verse) concerning him (i.e. It is not fitting for the Prophet and those who believe that they should invoke (Allah) for forgiveness for pagans even though they be of kin, after it has become clear to them that they are companions of the fire (9.113).

- Sahih Bukhari (Vol:2, Hadith:442 (Book 23))

Non-belonging souls..

“in every generation, there are a few souls, call them lucky or cursed, who are simply born not belonging, who come into the world semi-detached, if you like, without strong affiliation to family or location or nation or race; that there may even be millions, billions of such souls, as many non-belongers as belongers, perhaps; that, in sum, the phenomenon may be as “natural” a manifestation of human nature as its opposite, but one that has been mostly frustrated, throughout human history, by lack of opportunity. And not only by that: for those who value stability, who fear transience, uncertainty, change, have erected a powerful system of stigmas and taboos against rootlessness, that disruptive, anti-social force, so that we mostly conform, we pretend to be motivated by loyalties and solidarities we do not really feel, we hide our secret identities beneath the false skins of those identities which bear the belongers’ seal of approval. But the truth leaks out in our dreams; alone in our beds (because we are all alone at night, even if we do not sleep by ourselves), we soar, we fly, we flee. And in the waking dreams our societies permit, in our myths, our arts, our songs, we celebrate the non-belongers, the different ones, the outlaws, the freaks. What we forbid ourselves we pay good money to watch, in a play-house or movie theatre, or to read about between the secret covers of a book. Our libraries, our palaces of entertainment tell the truth. The tramp, the assassin, the rebel, the thief, the mutant, the outcast, the delinquent, the devil, the sinner, the traveller, the gangster, the runner, the mask: if we do not recognize in them our least-fulfilled needs, we would not invent them over and over again, in every place, in every language, in every time.”

 -    (The Ground Beneath her Feet)

love? hate?

"Narrated `Aisha:
When the Prophet became ill, some of his wives talked about a church which they had seen in Ethiopia and it was called Mariya. Um Salma and Um Habiba had been to Ethiopia, and both of them narrated its (the Church's) beauty and the pictures it contained. The Prophet raised his head and said, "Those are the people who, whenever a pious man dies amongst them, make a place of worship at his grave and then they make those pictures in it. Those are the worst  creatures in the sight of Allah." "


 - (Sahih Bukhari: vol. 2 (book 23), hadith 425)

(pic courtesy: *_Abhi_*)

"Narrated Ibn `Abbas: While the Prophet was performing Tawaf of the Ka`ba, he passed by a person who had tied his hands to another person with a rope or string or something like that. The Prophet cut it with his own hands and said, "Lead him by the hand." "


 - (Sahih Bukhari: vol. 2 (book 23), hadith 425)

വിഗ്രഹങ്ങൾ ..

"നിർവൃതിയുടെ നിമിഷങ്ങളിൽ കിട്ടിയതെന്തോ അത്‌ പ്രവാചകന്മാർ മുറുകെപ്പിടിച്ചു, കിട്ടാത്തത്‌, അവശേഷിച്ചത്‌, അവിദ്യയുടെ പെരുവഴിയിൽ ചിതറിവീണു. പ്രവചനത്തിന്റെ ഒരു ഭിന്നിതം മാത്രം കിട്ടിയ ഓരോ പ്രവാചകനും പറഞ്ഞു, 'ഞാനാണ്‌ വഴി.' ഈശ്വരസ്പർശത്തിന്റെ തീവ്രതയിൽ, പരമാനന്ദത്തിൽ, ഭിന്നിതം സ്വയം പൂർണ്ണമായി, പിന്നെ അത്‌ ചരിത്രത്തിലേക്കിറങ്ങി വിഗ്രഹവും ക്ഷേത്രവുമായി. വിഗ്രഹത്തെ ഒഴിച്ചുനിർത്തിയ പ്രാർത്ഥനാമന്ദിരമായി, സാധനയായി, നിയമമായി, ശാഠ്യമായി; ശാഠ്യം ആക്രമണവും യുദ്ധവുമായി."

- (പ്രവാചകന്റെ വഴി)


 [Laughing buddha pic cortesy: williamcho]

പ്രവാചകൻ ..

"

"പ്രവചനം ഒന്നിൽനിന്നും തുടങ്ങിയതല്ല, ഒന്നിലും അത്‌ അവസാനിയ്ക്കുന്നുമില്ല. എന്നാൽ പ്രവാചകൻ മനുഷ്യനാണ്‌, മനുഷ്യാവതാരത്തിന്റെ എല്ലാ പരിമിതികളും അയാൾക്കുണ്ടാകും. പ്രവാചകനിലൂടെ വന്ന അറിവുകൾ കുറിച്ചുവെയ്ക്കുന്നതും മനുഷ്യൻ, പരിമിതികളുള്ളവൻ! താൻ ആവർത്തിയ്ക്കുന്നത്‌ അവന്റെ വാക്കുകളാണെന്നും, താൻ മാത്രമാണ്‌ വഴിയെന്നും ഒരു പ്രവാചകൻ പറയുമ്പോൾ അവൻ എണ്ണിയാലൊടുങ്ങാത്ത പ്രവാചക പരമ്പരകൾക്കുവേണ്ടി സംസാരിയ്ക്കുകയാണ്‌."

"പ്രവാചകന്മാരുടെ വ്യത്യാസങ്ങൾ--"

"മിനാരത്തിലെ വിളിയും ഓടക്കുഴലും തമ്മിലുള്ള വ്യത്യാസം, ഒട്ടകവും പശുവും തമ്മിലുള്ള വ്യത്യാസം, ഇതൊക്കെ പ്രവചനവാക്യങ്ങളുടെ പ്രതീകങ്ങളെ ഇത്തിരിയിത്തിരി ബാധിച്ചിരിയ്ക്കുന്നുവെന്നുമാത്രം. അപ്രകാരം തന്നെ, പ്രവാചകന്മാരുടെ പിന്മുറക്കാർ ഭരണാധിപന്മാരായി മാറുമ്പോൾ സ്വന്തം സ്ഥാപിതതാൽപര്യങ്ങളെ പ്രവചനത്തിന്റെ ചുട്ടികുത്തി മതഗ്രന്ഥങ്ങളിലേയ്ക്ക്‌ തിരുകിക്കയറ്റുകയും ചെയ്യുന്നു."

"അപ്പോൾ ഈ താടിയും മുടിയും," സുജാൻസിങ്ങിന്റെ സ്വരം ചരിത്രസന്ദേഹങ്ങൾകൊണ്ടു നിറഞ്ഞു, "ഉടമ്പടിയെന്ന് കോർപ്പറൽ വൈസ്മൻ വിളിച്ച ഈ അനുഷ്ഠാനം, അതിനുവേണ്ടി മരിയ്ക്കുന്നതിൽ അർത്ഥമില്ലെന്നാണോ അങ്ങ്‌ പറഞ്ഞുവരുന്നത്‌?"

"അങ്ങനെയെന്തെങ്കിലും തറപ്പിച്ചുപറയാൻ എനിയ്ക്കു വയ്യ സുജാൻസിംഗ്‌."

"പിന്നെ ഹിന്ദുവും ശിഖനും ഇങ്ങനെ പെരുമാറുന്നത്‌ എന്തുകൊണ്ട്‌?" കുരിശുയുദ്ധങ്ങൾ എങ്ങനെയുണ്ടായി?"

നാരായണൻ ഭയന്നും വേദനിച്ചും പറഞ്ഞു, "പ്രവാചകന്‌ ചിലപ്പോൾ തെറ്റുപറ്റുന്നു, മിക്കപ്പോഴും പ്രവചനത്തിന്റെ അവസാനവാക്യങ്ങൾ കേൾക്കാനാവാതെ ദൈവാനുഭവത്തിൽ പ്രവാചകൻ എരിയുന്നു."

"ഇത്‌ ഞാൻ എങ്ങനെ സഹിക്കും, സാബ്‌?"

"ഇത്തരം സഹനങ്ങളുടെ പ്രത്യക്ഷരേഖകളാണ്‌ ഭാരതത്തിന്റെ ആത്മീയത."
                                                                                                       "

- (പ്രവാചകന്റെ വഴി) [Amazon link: Pravachakante vazhi]


[Preaching pic courtesy: Eric Skiff]

Red sand hill..

Narrated Abu Huraira: The angel of death was sent to Moses and when he went to him,  Moses slapped him severely, spoiling one of his eyes. The angel went back to his Lord, and said, "You sent me to a slave who does not want to die." Allah restored his eye and said, "Go back and tell him (i.e. Moses) to place his hand over the back of an ox, for he will be allowed to live for a number of years equal to the number of hairs coming under his hand." (So the angel came to him and told him the same). Then Moses asked, "O my Lord! What will be then?" He said, "Death will be then." He said, "(Let it be) now." He asked Allah that He bring him near the Sacred Land at a distance of a stone's throw. Allah's Apostle (p.b.u.h) said, "Were I there I would show you the grave of Moses by the way near the red sand hill."

- (Sahih Bukhari: Vol.2, book 23, hadith 423)

[red sand hill pic courtesy: NeilsPhotography]

The Alchemist

Title: The Alchemist
Author: Paulo Coelho
ISBN: 978-81-7223-498-0
Publ: Harper Collins


This book has been there on my TBR shelf for over a year now, and I felt it too cruel to make it wait any longer.  Almost everyone has read this book and it has been talked about so much to the point that people seem to have stopped discussing it anymore. It was high time. And as soon as I took my plunge, sudden realization occurred that I had returned once again to something that I have always treasured so much and yet remained forgotten or abandoned due to negligence.


In the prologue, the author presents an entirely different angle to the story of Narcissus, whose tale is known by everyone and has been told and retold so many times over. Just see this:

'.. when Narcissus died, the goddesses of the forest appeared and found the lake, which had been fresh water, transformed into a lake of salty tears.

“Why do you weep?” the goddesses asked.

“I weep for Narcissus,” the lake replied.

“Ah, it is no surprise that you weep for Narcissus,” they said, “for though we always pursued him in the forest, you alone could contemplate his beauty close at hand.”

“But… was Narcissus beautiful?” the lake asked.

“Who better than you to know that?” the goddesses said in wonder. “After all, it was by your banks that he knelt each day to contemplate himself!”

The lake was silent for some time. Finally, it said:

“I weep for Narcissus, but I never noticed that Narcissus was beautiful. I weep because, each time he knelt beside my banks, I could see, in the depths of his eyes, my own beauty reflected...”  '

Paulo Coelho is a beautiful writer.


Page 9 reminded me about my father:

' “Well, I’d like to see their land, and see how they live,” said his son.

“The people who come here have a lot of money to spend, so they can afford to travel,” his father said. “Amongst us, the only ones who travel are the shepherds.”

“Well, then I’ll be a shepherd!”

His father said no more. The next day, he gave his son a pouch that held three ancient Spanish gold coins.

“I found these one day in the fields. I wanted them to be a part of your inheritance. But use them to buy your flock. Take to the fields, and someday you’ll learn that our countryside is the best, and our women the most beautiful.”

And he gave the boy his blessing. The boy could see in his father’s gaze a desire to be able, himself, to travel the world – a desire that was still alive, despite his father’s having had to bury it, over dozens of years, under the burden of struggling for water to drink, food to eat, and the same place to sleep every night of his life.'

Paulo Coelho must have had a father same as mine. Or.. is it the same story with all fathers and sons around the world?.. I don't know.


There have been numerous authors and numerous books so far in the world. And all sorts of stories have been told. All possibilities have been explored to such an extent that there seems hardly anything that is to be told in the space between a book and another, between an author and the next. Yet to our surprise, ideas sprout, stories never before told spring up from obscure spaces we thought not to be, though extremely rarely, and when someone makes it happen, we call him/her a genius. Coelho is one. He could see things that others fail to:

' “I have had the same dream twice,” he said. “I dreamed that I was in a field with my sheep, when a child appeared and began to play with the animals. I don’t like people to do that, because the sheep are afraid of strangers. But children always seem to be able to play with them without frightening them. I don’t know why. I don’t know how animals know the age of human beings.'

By the time I reached page 43, I was thinking of Kuruvi Gopi.. The boys travels in The Alchemist is similar to the ones of Kuruvi Gopi in the book which has his name for the title. It is perhaps the first novel I have ever read. I read it as a child. It's a novel for children, and I had loved it so intensely. I need a copy of it again. I miss it so much! But DC Books says it's out of stock..


At page 45, my thoughts were revolving around the question as to what kind of writer Paulo Coelho was. We call them by different names- writers, authors, men of letters, literateurs.. but more suitable for him is the word 'storyteller'. Like  Rushdie, he is a teller of amazing tales, transcending fables. As Shashi Tharoor has told, Rushdie is perhaps the greatest prose-stylist of our times. He plays with words and ideas to create vivid and colourful pictures in our minds. And Coelho's solemn style touches your soul.


Pages 88-89 triggered a string of thoughts:
1. The word 'language' has been appearing throughout the book in many places, and finally when the book says that the one common language of the entire world was nothing but Love, we see what kind of literary magic the writer is capable of conjuring up, because in one of the earlier pages when The Englishman talks about the Bible and says that:

"There is a universal language, understood by everybody, but already forgotten. I am in search of that universal language, among other things. That's why I'm here. I have to find a man who knows that universal language."

we can't help but only think of the Tower of Babel and the one common tongue of the people which was split into uncountably many and perplexingly varied by it.

'At that moment, it seemed to him that time stood still, and the Soul of the World surged within him. When he looked into her dark eyes, and saw that her lips were poised between a laugh and silence, he learned the most important part of the language that all the world spoke— the language that everyone on earth was capable of understanding in their heart. It was love. Something older than humanity, more ancient than the desert. Something that exerted the same force whenever two pairs of eyes met, as had theirs here at the well. She smiled, and that was certainly an omen— the omen he had been awaiting, without even knowing he was, for all his life. The omen he had sought to find with his sheep and in his books, in the crystals and in the silence of the desert. It was the pure Language of the World. It required no explanation, just as the universe needs none as it travels through endless time. What the boy felt at that moment was that he was in the presence of the only woman in his life, and that, with no need for words, she recognized the same thing. He was more certain of it than of anything in the world.'

2. If Paulo Coelho's stories can be said to be of a similar quality of any earlier writer, it must be Kahlil Gibran's.


3. The book reminded me of the importance of believing in love at frst sight. I'm a very late believer of it. Until not very long back I used to believe that only after knowing enough of each other must two people be in love. But the world taught me otherwise through years. And I started believing in love at first sight. And it was only recently in a beautiful email with amazing pictures and inspiring words that the idea occurred in words as a theory to me for the first time after it. And the following quote from the book is my second reminder:

'He had been told by his parents and grandparents that he must fall in love and really know a person before becoming committed. But maybe people who felt that way had never learned the universal language. Because, when you know that language, it's easy to understand that someone in the world awaits you, whether it's in the middle of the desert or in some great city. And when two such people encounter each other, and their eyes meet, the past and the future become unimportant. There is only that moment..'

Anyway, after three quarters of the book, I felt the entire plot was turning less deeper and I feared if the ending was not taken good care of, the book was going to lose the impact it had been making so far at the time I close it. And unfortunately it turned out to be slightly true, if not entirely. Nevertheless, it fulfills in a wonderful way what is written on the back cover. That it's a book about following your dream. It has managed far better than most of the so-called spiritual self-help books that make similar claims and turn out to be totally useless, like The Monk who Sold his Ferrari . It says that it's about fulfilling your dreams. Duh! But then, perhaps there are people who like it that way.

Mercy 'n' wrath..

Narrated Abu Qilaba:
Anas said, "Some people of `Ukl or `Uraina tribe came to Medina and its climate did not suit them. So the Prophet ordered them to go to the herd of (Milch) camels and to drink their milk and urine (as a medicine). So they went as directed and after they became healthy, they killed the shepherd of the Prophet and drove away all the camels. The news reached the Prophet early in the morning and he sent (men) in their pursuit and they were captured and brought at noon. He then ordered to cut their hands and feet (and it was done), and their eyes were branded with heated pieces of iron, They were put in 'Al−Harra' and when they asked for water, no water was given to them." Abu Qilaba said, "Those people committed theft and murder, became infidels after embracing Islam and fought against Allah and His Apostle ."

- (Sahih Bukhari: vol 1, book 4, hadith 234)

Narrated Abu Ma`bad (the slave of Ibn `Abbas):
Allah's Apostle said to Mu`adh, "be afraid of the curse of an oppressed person because there is no screen between his invocation and Allah."

- (Sahih Bukhari: vol 2, book 24, hadith 573)

[Snow pic courtesy: Tony the Misfit

Green pic courtesy: ƥɾαɳαʋ]

The Enchantress of Florence

Title: The Enchantress of Florence
Author: Salman Rushdie
Publ: Jonathan Cape
ISBN: 978-0-224-06163-6


When I read Fury I felt it very un-Rushdie-like. More so, when you compare it with his books like Midnight's Children and The Satanic Verses which contain essentially nothing but an interesting and colourful jumble of words and ideas and don't seem to bother much about a proper structure or form for the plot itself. This book, The Enchantress of Florence is an amazing blend of the two styles of Rushdie. The story has a proper beginning and ending and has a very easy flow. It takes place between two geographies of the sixteenth century, namely the Mughal empire under Akbar and the Renaissance Florence. It is, as the author himself says and is also obvious from the book itself, Rushdie's book in the making of which he has done the most amount of research.


One fine morning, a yellow-haired Italian from Florence appears from the blue before Akbar's court and claims that he is a long-lost relative of the Mughal family, having descended from Qara Koz (the Enchantress). The story unfolds as you read on, and the suspense as to how could the two different people from two different corners of the globe, who are otherwise, i.e., in real history, far from being connected in any way, be possibly  related (blood realtion at that! (sort of)) is tightly held until last unlike many of Rushdie's novels, which makes it all the more a gorgeous read. One thing I found very different from other works of Rushdie, apart from other factors, is that it's not just the playful Rushdie all the way; one can spot Rushdie the philosopher in at least a few passages in this book, if not spread all over the place, requesting your company in his serious thoughts about love, ego and issues such as incest and troubles with relationships.


I was expecting that the story would be almost equally divided between Florence and Fatehpur Sikri, but the Florence part was found to take up more pages than the fabulous Sikri of Akbar. But I enjoyed the Indian part more than the Western narrative, probably because I could relate more to the Eastern history being from India myself than the tales of Florence of which I hardly know anything. But nevertheless no doubt this is a book of substance, and perhaps the most matured and most polished work of Rushdie so far, scrupulously chiselled to perfection. 


Valuable literature, indeed!


[Note: For a better understanding of the book, or the making of it, to be more precise, please read Rushdie's interview with James Mustich: Salman Rushdie Spins a Yarn in Barnes & Noble Review.]

glory and stones..

Narrated Kharija bin Zaid bin Thabit:

"Um Al-'Ala', an Ansari woman who gave the pledge of allegiance to the Prophet said to me, "The emigrants were distributed amongst us by drawing lots and we got in our share 'Uthman bin Maz'un. We made him stay with us in our house. Then he suffered from a disease which proved fatal. When he died and was given a bath and was shrouded in his clothes, Allah's Apostle came. I said, 'May Allah be merciful to you, O Abu As-Sa'ib! I testify that Allah has honored you'. The Prophet said, 'How do you know that Allah has honored him?' I replied, 'O Allah's Apostle! Let my father be sacrificed for you! On whom else shall Allah bestow His honor?' The Prophet said, 'No doubt, death came to him. By Allah, I too wish him good, but by Allah, I do not know what Allah will do with me though I am Allah's Apostle.' "

- (Sahih Bukhari: Book 23, hadith 334)

Narrated `Abdullah bin `Umar :

"The Jew brought to the Prophet a man and a woman from amongst them who have committed (adultery) illegal sexual intercourse. He ordered both of them to be stoned (to death), near the place of offering the funeral prayers beside the mosque."

- (Sahih Bukhari: Book 23, hadith 413)

[stones pic courtesy: faith goble]

women..

'Narrated Abu Huraira: The Prophet (p.b.u.h) said, "It is not permissible for a woman who believes in Allah and the Last Day to travel for one day and night except with a Mahram." '

- (Sahih Bukhari: book-20, hadith-194)






'Narrated `Aisha: "A woman from the tribe of Bani Asad was sitting with me and Allah's Apostle (p.b.u.h) came to my house and said, "Who is this?" I said, "(She is) So and so. She does not sleep at night because she is engaged in prayer." The Prophet said disapprovingly: "Do (good) deeds which is within your capacity as Allah never gets tired of giving rewards till you get tired of doing good deeds." " '

- (Sahih Bukhari: book-21, hadith-251n)


(Image courtesy: siavash laghai)